It’s no ordinary day for Diego Moral. The right winger, who has been a student of Marcet Academy for the past 3 months, will face Valencia later on today.Together with his teammates, Diego heads to the bus that will take the expedition to the Paterna’s Training Grounds.His footballing passion stems way back: “When I was two years old I would sleep with three footballs in the bed,” recalls the Chiloeches (Guadalajara) player. “Years later, as my sheets were always stained with mud, my father made a deal with me: if I stopped sleeping with the balls, he’d sign me up to an indoor football team.”.“After that first experience with the footballing world I made the jump to full-scale football with Guadalajara. Then, when I was 13, I started playing for Atlético Torrejón. I had a really good season and so the year after I was contacted by Adarve to play in the Honour Division.With the club from Madrid, Diego started getting used to making long journeys to play against other high-level teams. Nevertheless, this adventure did not last very long. After two months, a hamstring injury took him off the field for the rest of the season.“I had to go back to Torrejón and it was very difficult to get back to my old level. At the end of that season, our coach advised me to participate in Marcet’s Draft which in turn helped open the doors to the Professional Programme.”Halfway between Barcelona and Valencia, the expedition stops to refuel their energy levels before the game. The eating hours are always planned to optimize the performance of the players on the pitch. Details such as this mark the difference between amateur football and a High Performance Academy.“I was surprised when I was told we would train every single day at Marcet,” remembers Diego. “In the beginning I had to get used to it because quite often we’d have a double session: one in the morning and one in the afternoon. You end up appreciating it because you really feel a difference during matches, on a physical as well as a technical and tactical level. It’s not like in other clubs, when you train a few times a week and are left wanting more.”“They are helping me a lot at Marcet. I’ve never learned as much as I have here. I want to make the most of this opportunity to carry on improving and hopefully sign for a big club.”On the last leg of the trip to Valencia, Marc Vinyals takes a moment to speak with his players: “The coach has asked me to help out more in defence, to close spaces,” says Diego. “Another objective I have been assigned is to improve my crosses, evaluating the best option before making them.”The expedition reaches Paterna’s Training Grounds and the tension rises noticeably, “Not only is the match important to test myself, but I also want to play well so that Valencia may take notice of me.”Before the game, the players gather together on the pitch. “Regardless of the result, I’ll return home satisfied as long as I manage to bring my own value to the table.”Marcet’s starting eleven boasts footballers from countries as far and wide as Spain, Colombia, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Switzerland and Egypt.The players step onto the field to begin -what will be so far- the most important battle of the 2019-20 season.“Our trainers have told us that Valencia is a team that plays with a lot of intensity, they play a very quick game and apply a lot of pressure… You always need some extra intensity when playing against a team of this calibre.”For Diego, such demanding matches matches are nothing new. During his short time with Adarve he was able to face clubs such as Atlético de Madrid and Villarreal; although his injury brought these opportunities to an abrupt end.On the field of play, the teams are evenly matched. The defence of both teams are doing their job well and are impeding any opportunities for scoring a goal.After the end of the first half, the score is 0-0. The second half begins with a higher protagonism from the visiting team. Diego and his side manage to make it into the rivals area, aiming just wide of the goal on various occasions.Just when Marcet were playing some of their best football, Valencia manages to push ahead with an impeccably taken free-kick.In the 65th minute, Diego leaves the field with score at 1-0. “I didn’t play as well as I would have liked. I didn’t have many opportunities to make crosses, but I did work hard to help the team both defensively and offensively.”Once back in Barcelona, Diego analyses his performance with a Marcet analyst, who explained that he played well, but could still improve in a few areas, and then goes on to assign him specific objectives to help with his progress. “What I have taken away from the match against Valencia is the importance of teamwork, of helping one another on the pitch.” And this will undoubtedly help Diego on his path to professional football.
If you have questions about any of our courses, or want us to send you more information, fill out the following form.
